The Reign of TERROR

A Revolution
The Guillotine
The End of The Terror

It was a dark time in France's history. Louis XVI was not concerned for his starving citizens on the side of the streets. He lived in royalty while thousands could not afford to buy bread. These same people were the most heavily taxed. They wanted change. The time had come. They strove for reform.... They brought about a revolution.

The reign of Terror began on September 5, 1793 when the Committee of Public Safety, due to the pressure from the war they were facing, declared France in a state of emergency. The people of France were now at the mercy of this new dictatorial Committee. Because France had declared that they would spread the Revolution to every country in Europe, the First Coalition,(the alliance of Great Britian, the Netherlands, Spain, Austria, and Prussia) forced French troops out of the Austrian Netherlands and invaded France. There were also people inside the country that did not support the revoluion. Maximillian Robespierre had recently joined the Committee of Public Safety, a group of 12 men that at the time had virtually supremem control over France, and he rose quickly to becoming the most influencial and powerful leader in the group. With internal revolts on the brink of exploding, as well as increasing pressure from the other European monarchs, Robespierre declared France in a state of emergency thus beginning the Reign of Terror. Their aim was to violently repress any counterrevolutionary elements, guaranty food to citizens and soldiers, and raise new armies.

The Reign of Terror also made full use of the newly created guillotine. Thousands upon thousands of men, women, and children were executed by this instrument of terror throughout this period of time, simply because there was a suspicion that they were against the revolution. This was made possible by the Law of Suspects which came into play on September 17. It allowed anyone to be charged with heresy if there was any suspicion that they had counterrevolutionary motives. Everyday victims were hauled through blood-thirsty, screaming crowds in a simple wooden cart to be beheaded by the guillotine. Their severed heads were paraded around cities and town on long pikes, and the streets ran red with blood by the time the sun set. Although so much blood was shed, the Committee succeeded in greatly increasing the size of the army with the Jacobins help. They began to defeat the First Coalition and easily, but violently, stop revolts. France was saved from the re-establisment of a monarchy. As the period progressed, the "criminals" goods were taken to prepare for a re-distribution of wealth in France. The Committee also managed to lower food prices of other essential goods, however the economy was still suffering from years of war and tough reform.

Robespierre insisted on associating Terror with virture, which made it very difficult for the people of France to feel as though they were part of a unified, patriotic nation. Even the radical Jacobins, the supporters of Robespierre, came to feel that the Terror should be stopped. Danton rose in the Convention calling for an end to the Terror. He was its next victim. Fearful of Danton's idea spreading, the Convention passed a decree stating that any accused person who insulted the court would not be allowed to speak inhis own defense. This was the case with Danton. A later conspiracy within the Committee overthrew Robespierre. His supporters in turn attempted to burn Paris to the ground. Their attempt failed, and they all (Robespierre included) were guillotined on July 28, 1974. This put an end to the Reign of Terror which, although lasting less then a year, struck a deep mark into France's history and revolution.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

"Reign of Terror." Wikipedia. 20 Feb. 2006 http://en.wikipedia.org.

"Reign of Terror." The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition. 20 Feb. 2006 http://www.bartleby.com.

Hanes III, William T., ed. World History: Continuity & Change. Austin, Texis: Holt, Rinehart and Winston, 1997. 469-473.